All plants are dormant until they germinate. That is, things like ambient
temperature, cold-wet conditions (stratification), and light requirements
are all just mechanisms that aid in breaking dormancy. Most seeds of wild
species, except many wetland species, have multiple dormancy mechanisms.
This allows the plants to germinate at the optimum time. If all of a
seeds dormancy mechanisms are not triggered the appropriate amount (some
can overshadow others of course), the seed will not germinate.